The British Academy of Film and Television Arts has come under criticism after announcing their 2017 nominations which revealed that there was no recognition for BAME actors in leading roles or directors.

"The issue was thrown into sharp relief by the fact that the Bafta nominations arrived the day after the Golden Globes, where Moonlight won best film (drama) and Jenkins, Washington and interracial romance Loving star Ruth Negga were all nominated in major categories. However, Moonlight’s Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris, and Fences’ Viola Davis were nominated in Bafta’s supporting actor slots, as well as Lion’s Dev Patel."

Lack of BAME representation in the film industry and particularly in the British film industry is something that we are committed to improving at ELAM, which is one of the reasons why we are launching our new Film and Television Production course from our brand new building in Bromley by Bow next year.